Average account longevity stands at a very low 2.5 years. Just about every client we speak with asks that we find them an agency ‘partner’. But what is a partnership? And what steps are necessary for a communications agency or client to form a partnership?
According to one commonly accepted definition of partnership, two firms or partners establish a formal component of shared financial risk or an actual joint venture in which the success or failure of either greatly impacts the other. At times, the clients we work with are generally seeking this type of arrangement—a pay for performance model, but this isn’t universally true. So, what is it that clients and agencies really want to see in one another when speaking of a ‘partnership’?
Some agency-side folks and client-side marketers characterize partnership with attributes which could be mistaken as a description of superior customer service, or a trusted friend. Working together, meeting deadlines, championing ideas and celebrating collective success are routinely suggested as important aspects of partnership in speaking with us. Most often, those who approach the textbook meaning are clients. And those clients who creep near the textbook defintion generally express a willingness to balance the scales; these individuals are open to helping their agency meet its targets for growth as compensation for meeting their internal marketing objectives.
But, we’d suggest that while campaign results clearly matter, softer aspects of relationship building are critical contributors to the overall health and success of a client/agency relationship. We would argue that most marketers may be grouped according to the way in which they attack challenges into one of two groups: strategists or delivery-masters. Strategists (both agency-side and client-side) value challenges and enjoy pushing forward with innovative techniques whereas Delivery-Masters are focused on small progressive steps and consistently meeting deadlines. A mismatch between client contact and account handler (ex. matching a tactical client with an agency strategist or vice versa) proves frustrating for both parties and may, ruin the client/agency relationship.
What do you think it takes to make a client/agency relationship work?
If you’re really keen on this topic and would like to read more, here are couple recent articles you may enjoy. The first one, ‘Agency Client Relationships Fit Together and Stay Together’ is a great read for those who are keen to better understand agency/client dynamics. And the second, Managing Your Agencies, is more of a practical guide for the day to day.
